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Adarsh: 3 former Chief Ministers to file affidavits by May 26

Vinaya Deshpande

26 private affidavits filed before Adarsh commission
Panel to examine more than 100 witnesses

Mumbai: The two-member Adarsh commission has given three days' extension to four politicians, including three former Chief Ministers of Maharashtra, to file their affidavits related to Adarsh society issue. They will have to submit their affidavits by May 26.

“We have asked Sushil Kumar Shinde, Vilasrao Deshmukh, Ashok Chavan and Sunil Tatkare to file their affidavits by May 26,” N.N. Kumbhar, Secretary of the commission, told journalists here on Monday.

To a question, Mr. Kumbhar said 96 members of the society had filed their affidavits.

Many private organisations and individuals had shown interest in the Adarsh case and pleaded to make them party to it. “Twenty-six private affidavits have been filed before the commission,” Mr. Kumbhar said. Many non-governmental organisations and activists had filed their affidavits.

Some of them have accused the former Chief Ministers of having misused their powers. Informed sources said the politicians were sent copies of such affidavits and asked to respond to them. “Some of the private parties' affidavits run into around 400 pages,” an official said.

Second witness

The commission is examining its second witness. It is slated to examine more than 100 witnesses. Defence Estate Officer Gita Kashyap Perti, who is the second witness of the Ministry of Defence after Brigadier Deepak Saxena, has been deposing before the commission.

On Monday, she said that according to records, the land in question belonged to the Maharashtra government and not to the Defence Ministry. The official also admitted that she had not submitted all the related documents to the commission.

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